Collectible card with correlated virtual collection and authentication

ABSTRACT

Generally, the present disclosure provides a system and method for distributing subjective images on paper or other material containing symbols, serial alphanumeric strings and cryptograms indelibly connecting the card object and content to computer systems. and real objects marked with the same code or serial ASCII character string. Further areas of applicability of the present teachings will become apparent from the description provided herein. It should be understood that the description and specific examples are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present teachings.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialwhich is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to the reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure as itappears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office records, butotherwise reserves all copyrights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This application relates generally to collectible cards. Moreparticularly, this application relates to collectible cards withcorrelated virtual collection and authentication systems. Moreparticularly still, collection cards may be utilized on connection withonline and/or offline gaming interaction, ownership, economic, and/ortrading aspects.

2. Background

The statements in this section merely provide background informationrelated to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

Current collectible trading cards are sold and traded with a variety ofimages depicting subject matter across the world. Collectors trade andsell cards online and through conferences, clubs and other events makingthe acquisition of new and old collectable trading cards an exciting andcompetitive activity. Due to the advent of computers and online/offlinegaming systems a new system and enumeration technique is required toextend the scope of collectible trading cards, their subject matter andusage in reality as well as virtual reality.

SUMMARY

Generally, the present disclosure provides a system and method forextending the usage of subject matter printed, embossed, or otherwiseplaced onto collectible trading cards to computer games and virtual cardcollections and tenderable currency.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To further clarify the aspects of embodiments of the present invention,a more particular description of the invention will be rendered byreference to specific embodiments thereof which are illustrated in theappended drawings. It is appreciated that these drawings depict onlytypical embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to beconsidered limiting of its scope. The invention will be described andexplained with additional specificity and detail through the use of theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows an example of a trading card according to one embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates the example trading card of FIG. 1, with a generaldescription of optional aspects of the trading card;

FIG. 3A depicts an example process of optional steps included withinaspects of the present invention;

FIG. 3B includes a continuation of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a trading card authentication andvalidation system as described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

The following description supplies specific details in order to providea thorough understanding. Nevertheless, the skilled artisan wouldunderstand that the apparatus, assembly, system and/or associated methodcan be implemented and used without employing theses specific details.For example, while the description herein focuses on collectible cardshaving gun related subject matter thereon, virtually any type of subjectmatter may be used.

Generally, the present disclosure provides a system and method forextending the usage of subject matter printed, embossed, or otherwiseplaced onto collectible trading cards to computer games and virtual cardcollections.

By extending the usage of collectible trading card subject matter tocomputer systems and gaming, new and unexploited value is attached toeach individual collectible trading card rendering the collectibletrading card into a virtual and real currency or tenderable entity.Mundane or extremely sensitive subject matter can be printed or embossedonto collectible trading cards offering a new format of advertisingwhereas the customer to be advertised to may purchase the advertisinginstrument for themselves as a collectible, tenderable object.

As disclosed, a collectible trading card of this kind is printed orembossed with a computer readable code for authentication and for thepurpose of further establishing the identity of each individualcollectible trading card. As disclosed, a collectible trading card ofthis kind may also be printed or embossed with an alphanumeric serialstring for usage as a user name and or password to be entered into acomputer terminal thereby identifying an individual collectible tradingcard and its printed or embossed subjective imagery. Further, theprinted or embossed computer readable code or alphanumeric serial stringmay relate to a real object e.g. a tea kettle or weapon that is markedwith the exact same code or string or a portion thereof, indelibly tyingthe real object to the individual collectible trading card and itssubjective imagery virtual or real. Although the alphanumeric serialstring on the collectible trading card may relate to a real objectmarked with the exact same code, this is not necessary. For instance,the trading card may be provided independent and separate from theactual object depicted thereon and/or may have a random alphanumericserial string unrelated to a serial number of the depicted subjectmatter.

Very sensitive subject matter can be depicted on the describedindividual collectible trading card. Examples of such subject matter orimagery are pictograms of weapons, vehicles designed for war, imagesdepicting the active usage of such objects, nude or clothed human forms,food products, machinery, ammunition, space exploration vehicles,underwater apparatus, real individual people, famous individual peoplebrandishing weapons or food, ad infinitum, and in any combination.Historically some products have become unfashionable or politicallyincorrect to mention or depict in advertising. A new vehicle foradvertising products has become necessary to ensure that the public atlarge has access to detailed information about these types of products.Advertising is typically paid for by the manufacturers of products orthe business entities that distribute or re-brand generic products astheir own. With this new format for advertising tabooed products orideas, the cost of advertising can be shared by the manufacturer, thedistributor and more importantly the customer on a direct basis. Throughthe process of creating identity and value for a particular individualcollectible trading card, a viral type of advertising becomes possiblefrom the birth of the card and its virtual twins.

An Example of Usage:

A customer visits a local variety store. The customer has enjoyed usingguns for target practice and hunting since childhood. The customer,while checking out, notices another childhood interest available on arack next to the checkout stand. The customer selects a pack ofcollectible trading cards wrapped in a shiny foil package. The customerbuys the collectible trading card pack because the pack of collectibletrading cards depict firearms of several kinds. When the customerarrives at home, the collectible trading cards depicting firearms getunwrapped and the customer holds in their hand several individuallyserialized collectible trading cards depicting firearms. As notedpreviously, the serial numbers may be random or other serial numbersspecific to the card, rather than to a weapon, although cards may alsobe received with a weapon, thereby tying the card to a specific weapon.

The customer follows the simple instructions on the back of thecollectible trading card, on the package, or on a separate card insidethe package, and navigates their personal computer to a website using aweb browser. The customer creates a new account on the website. Thecustomer navigates through the website to the section where firearms canbe registered virtually to ensure that the ownership of the collectibletrading card is absolutely tied to the customer until officially andintentionally transferred. A wide variety of multimedia content relatedto the image on each collectible trading card now becomes available tothe customer.

Some of the virtual content is supplied by manufacturers of the productsdepicted on the individual collectible trading card, some is provided byother owners of the same series of card, some by third party vendors(expert or not) that have submitted live footage or commentary about thefirearms depicted on each card. A price tag may appear on a page thatrelates to the specific registered collectible trading card and theimage depicted on the card. The price tag may, for instance, reflect aprice of the collectible trading card. That price may be related to theitem depicted and/or production and availability criteria. For instance,the price may be relative to the number of cards registered that aresimilar to the card owned by the customer, prices paid by others, anumber of times similar cards have been traded to other collectibletrading card owners, the number of similar cards produced, and the like.This virtual price tag reflects a real value for the acquired andregistered card and may be substantially more than what was paidoriginally by the owner.

The customer begins to regularly collect the same collectible tradingcards depicting firearms from the variety store that carried thecollectible trading cards before any other retailer in the region to thecustomer's knowledge. Messages from respected associations have beenrelayed several times to the customer through content on the collectibletrading cards they have purchased. The customer begins trading cards atconferences and local events, slowly building their collection to pointwhere great value both virtual as well as real is attributed to theircollection.

The customer may also begin trading cards via the registration site oranother site linked thereto. For instance, a virtual gun safe mayinclude a listing of all weapons on the cards registered by thecustomer. This virtual gun safe may even include duplicate items wherethe user has similar cards of the same firearm, but with differentrandom serial numbers. Through a trading or an exchange engine, thecustomer may list all his cards, and others may browse his collection,or the customer may list only cards available for exchange with others.As the cards have been entered through the verification process and theimage cross-linked with the serial number, customers trading through theexchange engine can be assured that the cards are authentic, verified,and non-counterfeit.

The customer has enjoyed playing computer games since the 1980's. A newversion of one of the customer's favorite computer games is releasedjust in time for Christmas. The customer receives a copy of the computergame and discovers that all of the firearms depicted on theircollectible trading cards can be cross registered with the new versionof the computer game and used directly in the game. Such crossregistration can be done through the registration site, the gamemanufacturer's site, or another linked site. The customer enjoys usinghis virtual firearms in the computer game. The firearms depicted on thecollectible trading cards and which are virtually usable in the computergame have been designed with the cooperation of the manufacturer and aretrue to real physics and ballistics. The trading card optionallyincludes information about the gun, including such information as thecountry of origin, the year(s) produced, the quantities produced,caliber available, retail/wholesale cost, type of action, size/type ofmagazine, length, barrel length, weight, production materials, sights,muzzle velocity, and the like. This information may also be cross-linedinto the computer game. For instance, if the customer's virtual guncollection includes a Mauser Model 1887, the video game is optionallydynamically adjusted show scenes depicting the country of manufacturer(i.e., Germany) and/or scenes depicting the country of use (i.e.,Turkey). Moreover, the scenery is optionally adjusted to be timesensitive, so that the gun may be used in virtual scenes relevant to theOttomans at the time the Mauser Turkish Model 1887 was actually used.

The customer may decide to purchase a real version of one of thefirearms exactly as depicted on the collectible trading card thecustomer purchased from the retailer originally. The customer returns tothe original variety store they purchased the collectible trading carddepicting the firearm they have grown to love in the computer game. Thecustomer purchases the exact firearm they have used in the computer gamefrom the variety store and receives a fresh collectible trading carddepicting the exact same model firearm they have just purchased that isserialized with the exact same alphanumeric string engraved on the realgun. The customer then trades or sells the original collectible tradingcard depicting the new firearm they just purchased for possibly morevalue than the real firearm costs. The customer continues to enjoy usingtheir virtual firearm in the computer game as well as shooting the realfirearm at the range for target practice and hunting in the wild and nowpossesses a collectible trading card with the exact same image andalphanumeric serial string as their real weapon.

The discussion herein refers to a number of methods and method steps andacts that may be performed. It should be noted, that although the methodsteps and acts may be discussed in a certain order or illustrated in aflow chart as occurring in a particular order, no particular ordering isnecessarily required unless specifically stated, or required because anact is dependent on another act being completed prior to the act beingperformed.

Embodiments of the present invention may comprise or utilize a specialpurpose or general-purpose computer including computer hardware, suchas, for example, one or more processors and system memory, as discussedin greater detail below. Embodiments within the scope of the presentinvention also include physical and other computer-readable media forcarrying or storing computer-executable instructions and/or datastructures. Such computer-readable media can be any available media thatcan be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer system.Computer-readable media that store computer-executable instructions arephysical storage media. Computer-readable media that carrycomputer-executable instructions are transmission media. Thus, by way ofexample, and not limitation, embodiments of the invention can compriseat least two distinctly different kinds of computer-readable media,including at least computer storage media and transmission media.

Examples of computer storage media include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM orother optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magneticstorage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store desiredprogram code means in the form of computer-executable instructions ordata structures and which can be accessed by a general purpose orspecial purpose computer.

A “network” is defined as one or more data links that enable thetransport of electronic data between computer systems and/or modules,engines, and/or other electronic devices. When information istransferred or provided over a network or another communicationsconnection (either hardwired, wireless, or a combination of hardwired orwireless) to a computer, the computer properly views the connection as atransmission medium. Transmissions media can include a network and/ordata links which can be used to carry or desired program code means inthe form of computer-executable instructions or data structures andwhich can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope ofcomputer-readable media.

Further, upon reaching various computer system components, program codemeans in the form of computer-executable instructions or data structurescan be transferred automatically from transmission media to computerstorage media (or vice versa). For example, computer-executableinstructions or data structures received over a network or data link canbe buffered in RAM within a network interface module (e.g., a “NIC”),and then eventually transferred to computer system RAM and/or to lessvolatile computer storage media at a computer system. Thus, it should beunderstood that computer storage media can be included in computersystem components that also (or even primarily) utilize transmissionmedia.

Computer-executable instructions comprise, for example, instructions anddata which, when executed at a processor, cause a general purposecomputer, special purpose computer, or special purpose processing deviceto perform a certain function or group of functions. The computerexecutable instructions may be, for example, binaries, intermediateformat instructions such as assembly language, or even source code.Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the described features or acts described above,nor performance of the described acts or steps by the componentsdescribed above. Rather, the described features and acts are disclosedas example forms of implementing the claims.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention may bepracticed in network computing environments with many types of computersystem configurations, including, personal computers, desktop computers,laptop computers, message processors, hand-held devices, multi-processorsystems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics,network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, mobile telephones,PDAs, pagers, routers, switches, and the like. The invention may also bepracticed in distributed system environments where local and remotecomputer systems, which are linked (either by hardwired data links,wireless data links, or by a combination of hardwired and wireless datalinks) through a network, both perform tasks. In a distributed computingenvironment, program modules may be located in both local and remotememory storage devices.

Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the invention may bepracticed in special-purpose or other computing devices integratedwithin or coupled to authentication engines, trading card point of salemachines, and the like.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail byway of illustration and example, for purposes of clarity andunderstanding, certain changes and modifications will be obvious tothose with skill in the art in view of the disclosure herein. Thedescribed embodiments are to be considered in all respects only asillustrative and not restrictive. For example, the trading carddescribed herein has only a single side illustrated; however,information may also be included on the reverse side of the tradingcard. The trading card subject matter may also be other than firearmsand the like. Thus, all changes which come within the meaning and rangeof equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

1. A method for authenticating trading cards, comprising: a verificationmechanism, receiving authentication indicia from a user, wherein theauthentication indicia is included on a trading card; determining thatthe authentication indicia is valid; and after determining that theauthentication indicia is valid, registering the trading card for thefirst and only time as authentic.
 2. A method as recited in claim 1,further comprising: after registering the trading card, adding subjectmatter depicted on the trading card to a virtual collection for theuser.
 3. A system for manufacturing and distributing cryptographicallyindividualized image bearing collector trading cards comprising: aserialized image bearing trading card, the serialized image bearingtrading card including one or more of the following indicia: i. adigitally encrypted message and individualized statistics and pertinentdetails rendered to a two-dimensional datamatrix symbol, pdf-417,maxicode or other computer readable portable database symbol; ii. adatamatrix code and/or image embedded within the printed image on thetrading card; or iii. a randomly or pseudo-randomly, non-sequentialserial number, the serial number being linked to the serialized imagebearing trading card and/or subject matter thereon; a remotely storedprivate/public key pair used for encrypting/decrypting and digitallysigning messages contained within distributed indicia imprinted upontrading cards; and a generating mechanism for digitally signing and/orencrypting messages, rendering datamatrix symbols from thesigned/encrypted messages, generating random or pseudo-random serialnumbers, and/or embedding symbols or other indicia into images or otherportions imprinted on collector trading cards.
 4. A computer system forauthenticating a user and allowing the registration of an individualizedcollector trading card, the system comprising: a registration engineconfigured to register an individualized trading card; an authenticationand validation engine; and a decoding engine.
 5. A computer system asrecited in claim 4, wherein the registration engine is furtherconfigured to render a digital twin card that is an exact digital matchto the real or physical trading card.
 6. A computer system as recited inclaim 4, wherein the authentication and validation engine is configuredto validate ownership to a single owner of the trading card.
 7. Acomputer system as recited in claim 6, wherein the system furthercomprises: an exchange engine, the exchange engine being adapted tofacilitate trading, appraisal or enhanced game play with the tradingcard, a virtual representation of the trading card, or the subjectmatter on the trading card.
 8. A computer system as recited in claim 4,wherein the decoding engine is configured to decode and authenticate twodimensional matrix symbols scanned using a clandestine flatbed computerbased document scanner or a handheld computing device.
 9. A computersystem as recited in claim 8, wherein the scanner or handheld computingdevice is or includes a PDA, smart phone, or other visual spectrumcamera bearing device with Internet connectivity.